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About Portland observer. (Portland, Or.) 1970-current | View Entire Issue (April 30, 1997)
A prii 30, 1997 * T he P ortland O bserver P age Ab QU S S tate B onds G old Pays For Housing O reg on’s general o b lig a tion v eteran s’ w elfare bonds, $ 10 million series 76 B and $30 m illion series 76 C, are rated ‘AA/F-1 + ’ by Fitch Investors Service. A dditionally, the state s $3.6 billion outstanding gen eral obligations are affirm ed > rtanì» baeruer Security added to Governor’s mansion ing NECA and IBEW 48 According to Timothy Gauthier, executive manager of the Oregon- Columbia chapter of NACA, and Gerald Bruce, business manager of IBEW Local 48, the two organi zations are proud to have the op portunity to serve Oregon in this The governor’s residence in Sa lem, known as Mahonia Hill, has an updated security system thanks to the Oregon-Columbia Chapter of the National Electrical Con tractors Association and the Inter national Brotherhood ot Electri cal Workers, Local 48. Working together, the two or ganizations contracted NECA/ 1BEW Local 48 electrical contrac tor Adams Electric Co. to update the high quality system. In order to continue to ensure the safety of Gov. John Kitzhaber and his family, the contractor and electricians aren’t talking about the details of the system. “ We can say that over 6,000 feet of wire has been installed on the project," said Adams Electric project manager Bob Ray. Adams Electric designed and installed the security system after conferring with the Oregon State Police about specific requirements way. ■ „ e “ In the same way that we work together to benefit our customers, NECA and IBEW L ocal 48 partnered with each other to bring our joint expertise to the state of Oregon,” said Gauthier. Bruce added, “ W e’re proud to have been a part o f m aking O regon's beautiful and historical governor’s residence even better ” Burglar Alarm Secures Governor's House: Electricians and contractors from NECA- member Adams Electric Co. (from left) Paul Schroder, Danilo Brayton, Howard v Morris and Rob Ray, recently designed and installed a new security system at the Oregon Governor’s residence in Salem. for the system. H ow ard M o rris, o w n er ot Adams Electric, commented, “the electricians we had on this job are highly sk ille d and ex trem ely knowledgeable. They've been prepared for this kind of exacting work through their training at the Metro Electri cal Training Center in northeast Portland. “W e’re very pleased to have been able to provide our services to the state o f Oregon,” Morris said. NECA and IBEW 48 have been involved in upgrading the general e le c tric a l sy stem s lo r the governor’s residence as well. Overall refurbishm ent o f the residence is ongoing and is being funded by a group of Oregon busi nesses and organizations, includ | at ‘A A ’. The new bonds are entirely for the v eteran s’ w elfare p ro gram, which funds housing m ortgage loans. The program is self-su p porting and current o p era tions are positive, reversing the trend o f some years ago when future d efic its w ere threatened. Some vulnerability does rem ain, due to interest rate sensitivity. The new bonds are subject to m andatory tender, w ithout any right to retain, on Feb. 1, W I ii 4 f not rem arketed, they will be redeem ed at par. Bond proceeds will be in vested until the rem arketing date in noncallable direct or guaranteed obligations ot the U S. governm ent or through an investm ent agreem ent with a provider having a rating e q u iv a le n t to th a t o f the bonds. The investm ents are not pledged to the bondholder. The issue was sold on April 15 through negotiation with Bear, Stearns & Co., Inc. The state sold $40 m illion long-term bonds for the p ro gram earlier this m onth. O regon’s rating is based on its low level o f tax -su p ported debt, am ounting to $267 per capita and 1.2% o f personal incom e, and on the vibrant econom ic grow th o f recent years, which has been reflected in favorable fin an cial operations. Em ployment in O regon has been growing at about the 4% level since 1994 and is in creasingly diversified. Personal incom e in 1995 rose 7.8%, or 126% o f the U.S. rate. O n a p er c a p ita b a s is , growth was m uted by the ris ing population, up about 10% since 1990, or nearly double the U.S. rate. Still, the state has im proved its relative position and per capita incom e is now equal to 93% o f the U.S. fig ure. Financial operations have been favorable and general fund balance is estim ated at $536 m illion at June 30,1997, well above the original b u d get as rev en u es have e x ceeded estim ates Although the state has accom m odated a m andated shift o f school funding, fi- n an ciai‘c hallenges do rem ain as other ballot m easures have m andated higher prison costs and further lim its on local taxation. The state has agreed to com pensate for the school portion o f tax re lie f resulting from the new limits. ""•r .h;m No Down Mortgage Loans Introduced This reserve can be used to pay closing costs, and up to 6 percent seller contributions are allowed for nonrecurring closing costs. This new 100 percent financing program is an enhancement of the company’s popular first- and sec ond-mortgage piggyback loan offer, which was introduced last year. WMC Mortgage will be the new name for Weyerhaeuser Mortgage Co., which is in the final stage of being sold to WMC Acquisition Co., a joint venture of Apollo Advisors L.P. and Spring Mountain Escrow Inc., California’s largest independent escrow company. Apollo Advisors com prises in vestm ent partners who control a 15 years. portfolio o f more than $5 billion Borrowers can qualify with a debt and ow n such co m p an ies as ratio of up to 45 percent, and there is Ralphs and D om inick’s super no housing expense ratio. m a rk e ts , S a m s o n ite C o rp ., However, borrowers must have 5 Culligan Water Technologies and percent of the sales price or appraised Converse and Florsheim shoes. The value, whichever is lesser, in cash sale is expected to close on April 30. reserves prior to closing. Mortgage Friday announced the introduction of a new 100 percent fixed-rate financing program with no down payment or mortgage insur ance required on conforming and jumbo loans of up to $333,000. O nly p re v io u s hom eow ners having a 12-month m ortgage-pay ment history and an excellent credit rating are eligible to par ticipate in the 100 percent financ ing program, which combines a 70 percent first mortgage with a 30 percent second m ortgage. The first mortgage is fixed for 30 years; the second mortgage may be fixed for either 10 or 15 years, or amortized over 30 years/ payable in SPA CE FOR LEASE ‘ Available June 1 * 2nd Floor Office Space (various sizes) URGENT! Going Fast: *Q small, 10’x l 4 ’ * Big Studios, Bath St Kitchen Retail Space • New Storefronts Facing Wygant • Visible from MLK (1) Dell Business Desired 720 sq.ft., at $425/mo WEIMER’S Final Closing Day Sale 50% off All Merchandise Month of May Only CALL All Sales Final M thru F 8:30am to 5:00pm 3946 N E. M L K Jr. Blvd. Phone 281-1217 B ill L eigh @ (503) 2 8 7 -2 6 3 4
